Modern internal combustion engines use a four stage cycle to obtain power for rotational motion from the ignition of a combustible fuel, such as gasoline. The first stage is intake wherein a mixture of air and fuel is introduced into a combustion chamber. The second stage is the compression of this mixture within the combustion chamber in preparation for the next stage, the power stage. In the power, or combustion stage, the compressed air and fuel mixture is ignited and the combustion rapidly increased the pressure within the combustion chamber. This pressure is exerted on a movable mechanical part, for example a linearly displaceable piston or a rotatable rotor, to harness power by capturing motion of this movable part. The final fourth stage is the exhausting of gases remaining in the combustion chamber.
Reciprocating type or piston-based engines involve the reciprocation of one or more pistons within a respective cylinder. The pistons are pivotally connected to a crankshaft to convert their linear motion into typically more useful rotational motion. A full rotation of the crankshaft corresponds to two complete strokes of a piston within its cylinder. In a four-stroke engine, a piston completes one combustion cycle for every two rotations of the crankshaft. A two-stroke engine completes its combustion cycle once every crankshaft rotation, but such engines are generally considered to be less efficient and create more pollution.
Rotary combustion engines involve rotational motion of a rotor within a stator instead of reciprocating motion of a piston within a cylinder. Such engines may benefit from a higher power to weight ratio, lower mechanical complexity and vibration reduction when compared to reciprocating engines.
A Wankel engine is a rotary combustion engine featuring a three-sided rotor arranged for planetary motion within an epitrochoid housing. The corners and faces of the rotor seal against the housing to divide its interior into three combustion chambers, each of which carries out four stages of the combustion cycle per rotor rotation for a total of twelve stages. However, the rotor rotates once for every three rotations of an output driveshaft, resulting in four completed stages of the combustion cycle per output rotation, the same as a two-stoke reciprocating engine piston and more than the four-stroke engine pistons typically used in automobiles.
A quasiturbine engine (U.S. Pat. No. 6,164,263) is a rotary combustion engine featuring a four-sided rhomboid rotor with its sides hinged at the corners. Similar to the Wankel engine, the corners and faces of the rotor seal against an oval-like housing like, but four chambers are created instead of three due to the four-sided rotor. However, the rotor turns at the same rate as the output driveshaft and therefore carries out sixteen completed stages of the combustion cycle per output rotation.
Due in part to current concerns regarding depletion of the world's finite supply of fossil fuels and detrimental effects to the environment associated with use of these fuels, there is a large desire to develop more fuel efficient and environmentally friendly alternatives to conventional internal combustion engines.
With this in mind, Applicant has designed a new internal combustion engine with a unique combination of elements not before seen by the Applicant.